What Fad Diet Supporters Don’t Tell You

Healthy weight loss is the main topic on this blog, and though I always discuss the technical aspects I feel people should know, I think it's important to evaluate the psychological side too. Emotional eating or eating because of stress are often overlooked, but they are just as serious as the foods you choose to eat. As humans, we are wired to eat for survival. But there's a 15-minute delay between actually being full...and our minds reporting to us that we're already full, which is called your appestat. This means your appestat can create a hunger battle within your mind since it has a lag time between your mind and your stomach feeling full.  Today I'd like to discuss two salient points that I feel fad diet supporters have failed to tell you as they relate to the psychological side of dieting.

A Healthy Diet Is Not About Pain!

First of all, eating should be enjoyable. Just because you're not swallowing buckets of cream and sugar doesn't mean you can't have an awesome dessert. Mango and avocado, semi-frozen, topped with natural yogurt and a teaspoon of honey is a much more healthy dessert, and leaves you feeling satisfied too. A diet does not mean punishing yourself. Sure you might find it hard to kick the sugar habit at first, or wean yourself off of salty, sugary or fried food, but healthy choices can be just as delicious and leave you feeling guilt-free. It's about feeling full on the good stuff, eating more slowly and waiting for your appestat to catch up with your belly so you know when you are truly full...but not stuffed.

A Healthy Diet Is Not About Punishing Yourself!

Is your craving causing you inner torture? If you simply cannot take it anymore, by all means give in. But be aware of yourself. Say to yourself, “I am eating to deal with my stress. I am aware.” Then when you eat your treat, enjoy it with a large glass of water and pace yourself. Relish every morsel, chew slowly and enjoy it. And stop after one serving, which might require a bit of will power.

A diet should not be about punishment or torture. A diet should revolve around gentle restraint. If you tend to ‘reward’ yourself with sweets, maybe you should try rewarding yourself with a new book, or a trip to the spa, or a yoga class. You will love yourself so much after you learn to accept yourself for who you are. You will also find that you’re actually much more in control of your body than you realized, so your confidence will increase, and living a healthy lifestyle will become something you just can't live without!

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